Apparatus for baking pies



1934- F. w. CARLSON 1,970,735

APPARATUS FOR BAKING PIES Filed May 23, 1932 INVENTOR- Patented Aug. 21, 1934 UNITED STATES.

APPARATUS FOR BAKING PIES Fred W. Carlson, Minneapolis, Minn.

Application May 23, 1932', Serial No. 612,889

5 Claims.

This invention relates to pie baking racks and to processes for baking pies. and kindred fruit filled pastries.

Small individual pies are now being extensively 5 used and much difficulty has been experienced by commercial bakers in properly baking these pies and in handling the same during the baking process. In order to bake these pies properly, it is essential that more intense heat be applied to the l bottoms and sides of the pies than to. the tops of the pies, so that the sides and bottoms of the pies may be browned without burning the tops.

If an even heat is applied to all portions of the pie, the fruit juices forming the center of the ;pie will boil before the sides and bottom of the pie are properly cooked and, as a result, the pie will boil over or explode before the bottom and side walls can be properly browned. Great difficulty is also experienced in handling these small 0 individual pies in the oven for the reason that the pies are too vlightto permit the use of an ordinary bakers peel to remove the pies from the oven.

It is, accordingly, an object of the present in- ,vention to provide a process for baking pies whereby more intense heat can be directed against the bottoms and sides of the pies than the tops thereof to cause the bottomsand side walls to be properly browned without at the same time causing the fruit juices of the pies to boil until the bottoms and side walls .are properly cooked.

Another object is to provide a novel rack wherein a number of small individual pies may be supported for proper baking in an oven and the,

pies may be easily inserted and withdrawn from the oven without difficulty.

The objects and advantages of the present invention will more fully appear from the following description, made in connection with the acqcompanying drawing, wherein like reference characters refer to the same or similar parts throughout the various views, and, in which,

Fig. 1 is a vertical section taken through a portion of a bake oven, and illustrating a number of iflindividual pie pans, as they will appear when mounted on the rack of the present invention after it has been placed in the oven, portions of the rack and of one of the pie pans being broken away to more clearly show the construction thereof;

Fig. 2 is a plan view of the rack; and Fig. 3 is a vertical section taken on the line 3--3 of Fig. 1, as indicated by the arrows. Referring to the drawing, portions of an ordi- -nary bake oven A are illustrated whichinclude an oven bottom 4, side and back walls 5, a front door 6 and a burner '7 located below the oven bottom 4., There are also shown a number of pie pans B of the type commonly used in baking small individualv Dies. bottom, upwardly and outwardly flaring side walls projecting therefrom, and an outturned horizon- H tal flange joining the. upper edges of the side walls. The various pies are prepared for baking in the pans-B.

In accordance with the present invention, there is provided what may be called a rack C for usev in connection with the baking of pies in pie pans B within such an oven as the oven A. This rack C is composed preferably of sheet metal and it has. a series of circular openings 8 out therethrough, these openings preferably being of approximatelythe same diameter as the diameter of the side walls of the pans B adjacent their upper edges. The rack C has downturned flanges 9- joining the edges of the plate at the sides and rear thereof- If desired, the lower edges of these flanges may be reversely bent upon themselves, as

best shown in Fig. 3, to strengthen the same and the flanges preferably are set at an obtuse angle to the main body of the rack C. The flanges 9 are I of a height somewhat less than the depth of the. side walls of the pie pans B in connection with which the rack C is to be used.

In bakingpies, the pies are first prepared for baking in the pie pans B, whereupon the pans are inserted within the apertures 8 of the rack C. A fork having two long tines spaced apart a dis tance corresponding to the spacingbetween the two side flanges 9 of the rack is then used for placing the rack C with the pans B therein in the, oven. The two tines of the fork are run below the 'main body of the rack from the front end thereof, whereupon by use of the fork the rack with its contents will be carried to the oven A. The outturned flanges at the upper edges of the side walls of the pans B will prevent the pans from dropping through the openings 8. The rack is placed on the oven bottom 4 so that the lower. edges of the flanges 9 rest directly on the oven bottom. As'the height of the flanges 9 is some-- 1 what less than the height of the side walls of the Eachof the pie pans B includes a 59 5 rack and pans are placed in the oven, the oven will be heated and the rack will form an enclosure about the bottoms and side walls of the pan within which air more intensely heated than the air in the upper portion of the oven will accumu late and be uniformly distributed and applied to the several pans. This intensely heated air will work up through the annular spaces 10 above the pans B from below the flanges thereof without coming into direct contact with the tops. of the pies held within the pans. As a result, much more intense heat will be applied to the bottoms and side walls of the pies than to the tops thereof and the side Walls and bottoms of the pies will be properly and uniformly cooked to brown the same without heating the fruit juices: of the pics to such an extent that the pies will boil over or explode before the side walls and bottoms ofthe' pies are completely cooked. The pies are cooked" in this manner until the liquid contents of the pies are heated to nearthe boiling point, where-- upon the side walls and bottoms willbe browned and the rack C may then be withdrawn fromthe oven by use of the fork previously described. The individual pies and the pie pans B within which they are contained, will be simultaneously lifted from the oven and it will notice necessary to use a bakers peel for this purpose.

It will be understood that the proper circulationand distribution of heated air in the rack chamber', below the top surfaces of the pies, is-ani'mof the intenser heat to the several pie units ar-" ranged in spaced relation within the chamber.

As I have already noted, the depending flanges 9 are arranged at only threeside edges of the" rack plateproper, and is omitted from the fourth edge;

1. e, at one end of the plate. This open end allows for the entrance and removal of the rack carrier fork, but also serves the additional purpose of permitting the oven air to circulate into the rack chamber, from which, after becoming more intensely heated, such air rises through the annular passages 10 with a wiping and heat transmitting contact with the side walls of the pans. Thus the side walls of the pans, and also the bottoms which rest on the initially heated. oven surface 4, will obviously be heated to a higher de-' gree' than the pie tops, which are only exposed" to the relatively cooler temperature of the oven chamber proper, which condition is of course an important object accomplished.

A further and very important consideration, however, is that this invention provides for'a baking process and arrangement'that is of commercial value because it enables the baking. of pies in groups and with a uniform baking temperature distributed to each unit of the group. Thus a. single unit rack chamber might be used for each pie tin, and no doubt a pie could be successfully baked therein. But such a, construction would. have no practical value in a bakery concern wheremillions of pies are baked annually; first because the non-uniform temperatures in the non-com muni'cative rack chambers would cause some'pies to bake quicker than others; and, secondly, the

laterally away from the upper several units would necessarily have to be placed in and removed from the oven individually by an instrument such as a baker's peel, and this process would not only unduly cool the oven for the unbaked pics, but would also be so slow as to increase the baking costs to a point where such small pies could not be made and sold to any profitable advantage. These objections are entirely'overcomeby this invention, and the constant circulation of. air through my rack chamber produces a uniform distribution of heat to the units of each group, with a result that the pies will be baked uniformly and can be made and sold with a commercial profit.

The baking process above described and the rackusedtherewith, has been successfully demonstrated in actual practice and it has been found that pies baked in this manner, are much more delicious and more uniformly and properly cooked than pies cooked without use of the rack C.

It will, of course, be understood that various changes may be made in the form, details, ar-

rangement and proportions of the rack-C and thatchanges may be made in the processes described without departure from the scope of the present invention, which, generally stated, consists in the matter shown and described and set forth in the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. An apparatus for baking pies in an oven, comprisingaseries of pie pans having downward 1y tapering frusto-conical side walls, and for resting with their bottoms on the oven floor during the baking operation, a rack plate with openings receiving the piepans and supported on the oven at a level below the tops of the pans to form a ire shallow heating chamber laterally surrounding the series of pie' pans, and such openings being larger than the horizontally adjacent pie pan circumferences so as to leave annular recesses in the plate about the several pans, said chamber having an inlet for receiving oven air to be circulated about the various pans and out through said annular recesses, whereby the sides and bottoms of the pans will be uniformly heated and at a higher degree of temperature than that applied tothe top surfaces of' the pan contents, and said pans having outwardly projecting flanges at their upper edges for engaging the plate when the latter is lifted, and spaced above the annular recesses, when in baking position, to deflect the hot air current rising thorugh the annular recesses I surfaces of the pies being baked.

2. An apparatus for baking pies in an oven, comprising a rack plate with openings adapted to receive a series of pie pans having downwardly tapering frusto-conical side Walls, and for resting with their'bottoms on the oven floorduring the baking operation, said rack plate-being supported on the oven at a level below the tops ofthe pans to form a shallow heating chamber laterally 'sur-' rounding the series of pie pans, and such openings being larger than the horizontally adjacent pie pancircumferences so as to leave annularrecesses in the plateabout the several pans, said chamber having aninlet for receiving oven air to be circulatedabout the various'pans and out through said annular recesses, whereby the sides and bottoms of the pans will be uniformly heated and at ahigher degree of temperature than. that applied to the top surfaces of the pan contents.

3. A pie baking apparatus of the character described comprising a horizontally disposed rack formingplate having a series of openings adapted" to receive a series of individual pie pans having peripheral flanges at their upper edges, and adapted to rest on an oven floor in spaced relation to each other during the baking operation, of means for supporting said plate over the oven bottom to form a heating chamber therewith but at a level below the level of the pan flanges so as to leave clearances therebetween when the plate and pans are reposing in operative position in the oven, said openings being sufficiently large to leave an annular recess about the pan walls when the pans are reposing in baking position on the oven bottom, but of lesser circumference than the outer circumferences of the respective pan flanges so that when the rack plate is raised it will close said clearances and annular recesses and lift the pans with it.

4. An apparatus for baking pies in an oven, comprising a rack plate having openings adapted to receive a series of pie pans having flat bottoms, upwardly flared side walls, and peripheral flanges at the upper edges of the side walls, said plate having depending flanges for supporting the same upon the oven floor at a level below the tops of the pie pans, said openings being sufliciently large to permit the pans to extend therethrough and rest upon the oven floor and to leave annular recesses about the pans, said plate and its flanges, when placed upon an oven floor, forming a heating chamber, and said chamber having a laterally disposed inlet opening for admitting air to be circulated about the several pans and upwardly through said annular recesses.

5. An apparatus for baking pics in an oven, comprising a rack plate having openings adapted to receive a series of pie pans having flat bottoms, upwardly flared side walls, and peripheral flanges at the upper sides of the side walls, said plate having depending flanges for supporting the same upon the oven floor at a level below the tops of the pie pans, said openings being sufliciently large to permit the pans to extend therethrough and rest upon the oven floor and to leave annular recesses about the pans, said plate and its flanges, when placed upon an oven floor, forming a heating chamber, and said chamber having a laterally disposed inlet opening for admitting air to be circulated about the several pans and upwardly through said annular recesses, and said peripheral pan flanges being of a width so as to extend outwardly of the annular recesses to engage and be lifted by the plate proper when the latter has been raised from the oven floor.

FRED W. CARLSON. 

